Xbox delayed its most exciting game of the year to 2025

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Earlier this summer, I wrote that Xbox had a pulse after a few quiet and disappointing years for the company’s first-party output. Among the titles I was most excited to see at the Xbox Games Showcase in June was Avowed, a new action RPG from Obsidian Entertainment. It didn’t have an official release date yet, but it looked to be in great shape for a 2024 launch. Unfortunately, that wasn’t meant to be, as Xbox has pushed the game to 2025.

In a tweet on Friday showcasing its upcoming releases, Xbox confirmed that Avowed was being delayed to February 18, 2025. The company says that it wants “to give players’ backlogs some breathing room” before launching the new game:

This is probably the correct decision, especially given how packed the rest of the year is looking for new video game releases. Xbox Game Studios alone is releasing eight more games and an expansion to Starfield before the end of the year, as seen above.

We’re also getting Astro Bot, The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero, Metaphor: ReFantazio, Mario & Luigi: Brothership, Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake, and Assassin’s Creed Shadows, just to name a few.

Here’s the story of Avowed, in case you’re curious: “Welcome to the Living Lands, a mysterious island filled with adventure and danger. You are the envoy of Aedyr, a distant land, sent to investigate rumors of a spreading plague throughout the Living Lands – an island full of mysteries and secrets, danger and adventure, and choices and consequences, and untamed wilderness. You discover a personal connection to the Living Lands and an ancient secret that threatens to destroy everything. Can you save this unknown frontier and your soul from the forces threatening to tear them asunder?”

Although we won’t be able to get our hands on the game until next year, Xbox is bringing the game to Gamescom in Germany later this month. You can tune in for the live stream at 6 a.m. PDT / 9 a.m. EDT on August 23 to see more of the Avowed.